“That’s very nice,” Luna said, blinking.
A lumberjack grandson?
How interesting. Maybe Luna should interview that guy.
“Does your grandson live in the mountains, too?”
“Oh, yes,” Luna said. “He has his own cabin, as well. He built it by hand.”
“That must have been difficult.”
“You’d be surprised what you can do when you put your mind to it.”
“Well, what’s one of the biggest draws of living in the woods, so to speak?”
“Well, I’m not too worried about all of this virus stuff,” Caroline said.
“I understand. So being in an area with a low population is going to be beneficial, is that what you’re saying?”
A new virus had been quietly spreading throughout the world over the last few weeks. In fact, the first cases had just been announced in Denver. A couple of colleges had closed already, but Luna was holding out hope that hers wouldn’t. She wanted to finish up her interviews so she could get back on the road. One of the reasons was so that she could hunker down and work on her thesis writing.
She had done so much when it came to conducting interviews and research that she felt like she was going to be able to write a really good, really well-rounded paper.
That is, as long as she could get home in time.
“Absolutely,” Caroline nodded. “You see, when I was a girl, a very long time ago,” she laughed, “things were different.”
“How were they different?”
“Aside from the obvious – no cell phones or computers – we also spent a lot of time on our own. We didn’t have to be around people all of the time. Young people today…” Her voice trailed off and she looked at Luna.
Luna didn’t like feeding answers or suggesting opinions to the people she interviewed, but she found herself smiling.
“Social media?”
“They’re always on social media!” Caroline said. “Even older people. I have friends who love social media. They’ve forgotten what it’s like to be isolated. This virus…”
Caroline shuddered, but didn’t say anything else.
“So do you think that dealing with a virus or some sort of outbreak would be better when you’re living off the grid?” Luna pushed.
“Yes,” Caroline said quickly. “Oh yes.”
“Why?”
“When you’re alone, you have time to rest and heal your body, but you also don’t have these huge groups coughing on you,” she said.
The door to the café jingled and Luna tried not to gawk at the tall, handsome, and slightly scary-looking man walked in. He was like a bull in a damn China shop. He was much too big for the tiny coffee house. Luna swallowed hard and turned back to Caroline. She tried to ignore the heat growing in her belly or the sensation of yearning between her legs.
How long had it been since she was with someone who made her heart go pitter-patter?
More importantly, how long had it been since she was so wet she could feel herself dripping onto her thighs?
A long time.
Too long.
“That’s right,” Luna said, turning back to Caroline. She tried to stay focused on the interview, but it suddenly felt impossible. Why did it feel impossible? Why did all of the air seem to be sucked out of her lungs?